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    History of Smithfield Middle School

    Smithfield Middle School opened its doors in the fall of 1975.  At that time, it was called Smithfield Jr. High.  Mr. James Neindorff was the first principal.  Several teachers came over from Watauga Jr. High to open the school.  By 1980, the student population had increased, and the back hall was added.   Mr. Neindorff retired in spring 1981, and in the fall of 1981, Mr. Ed Logan became the second principal.  The spring of 1989 was the last year our school was called Smithfield Jr. High.  Mr. Logan retired spring of 1989, and with the new middle school configuration, we also had a new principal.  Mrs. Doris Tipps became the 3rd principal of Smithfield Middle School in the fall of 1989. 

     

    In 1996, Smithfield Middle School received a second building expansion and renovation.  What is now the front hall was added, the large courtyard across the hall from the cafeteria was enclosed & covered and became what is now the library and two computer labs.  The old library space was converted into the two six grade science lab classrooms.  The present office previously was three classrooms and part of a courtyard.  Mrs. Tipps retired in the spring of 1998, and Ms. Susan Fisher became the fourth principal in the fall of 1998.  She was principal for five years until moving on to become principal of Birdville High School in 2003. 

     

    Mr. Jeff Russell became the fifth principal of SMS to begin the 2003 school year and was principal till 2011.  With Mr. Russell's leadership, Smithfield Middle received an "Exemplary" rating from the State of Texas during the 2009-2010 school year.

     

    Mr. Kyle Pekurney became the sixth principal of the Raider Nation from 2011-2022. During that time, Smithfield maintained its "Exemplary" rating from the State of Texas.  In addition, SMS became an Advanced Learning and College Prep Campus, focusing on college and career readiness through accelerated coursework, a rigorous curriculum, college visits, and personalized learning.  Smithfield Middle School also became a Texas School to Watch (2016-17) and a National School to Watch (2016-17), which is awarded to schools that have consistently moved to meet the nationally endorsed criteria for high-performing middle schools.  Also during this time, Smithfield was awarded the Top Middle School in Tarrant County (2017) and one of the Top 20 Middle Schools in Texas (2017).

     

    Mr. Jason Turner became the seventh principal of the Raider Nation in 2022.

     

     
Last Modified on August 24, 2023